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The two Beartown Firefighters killed in a traffic crash near Minneapolis returned home to a solemn welcome this (Tuesday) afternoon.
The motorcade carrying the bodies of 25-year-old Alan Swartz and 23-year-old James Shelifoe Jr., left Minnesota around 7:30 Eastern Daylight Time this morning. Firefighters in communities all along the route joined the cavalcade in tribute. Observers said that, at one point, the procession was two miles long.
The lead vehicles reached Baraga at around 4:30, and entered town at a walking pace. The two hearses were escorted by firefighters in dress uniforms on foot. They were greeted by “Amazing Grace” and then “Taps” on the PA system at Community Hill. See video of the procession here.
After a brief stop to allow the families some private time, the motorcade moved on to the Reid Funeral Home south of L’Anse.
Several of the other nine firefighters traveling in the ill-fated van remain hospitalized, but all are recovering. The driver of the van, 28-year-old Michael Allen Johnson of Baraga, is facing a charge of criminal vehicular homicide in Minnesota. Officials there say he has admitted falling asleep at the wheel before the transport vehicle veered into the median cables on a freeway, flipped over, and split in half. Officials also say he has confessed to using marijuana within 24 hours of the crash, and cocaine shortly before that.
Keweenaw Bay Indian Community officials said that nearly $20,000 has been raised to assist the families of the dead and injured. A fund to accept contributions has been set up through Superior National Bank.
Funerals are planned for Wednesday and Thursday. A community candlelight vigil has been scheduled for Friday at 8:00 p.m. near the Ojibwa Campground at Sand Point.
For more details, see numerous other stories posted here at KeweenawReport.com.
